This dissertation analyzes the differences between private and non-private firms in two contexts. Chapters 1 and 2 examine the electricity industry in the United States and the motivation behind electric utilities' usage of demand side management programs. The first chapter focuses on load management programs, which decrease electricity demand during the peak hours of the day. It looks into the impact of a plausibly exogenous decrease in natural gas prices on the utilization and capacity of these programs. The second chapter analyzes the relationship between electricity market deregulation and electric utilities' energy efficiency activity. The third chapter investigates the impact of Chinese enterprise restructuring on employment, wage bills, and productivity. All three chapters show that different objectives due to ownership type lead to differences in firm behavior.
","abstract_html":"<p>This dissertation analyzes the differences between private and non-private firms in two contexts. Chapters 1 and 2 examine the electricity industry in the United States and the motivation behind electric utilities' usage of demand side management programs. The first chapter focuses on load management programs, which decrease electricity demand during the peak hours of the day. It looks into the impact of a plausibly exogenous decrease in natural gas prices on the utilization and capacity of these programs. The second chapter analyzes the relationship between electricity market deregulation and electric utilities' energy efficiency activity. The third chapter investigates the impact of Chinese enterprise restructuring on employment, wage bills, and productivity. All three chapters show that different objectives due to ownership type lead to differences in firm behavior.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Chow, Melissa Chirk-May"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)","degree_level":"Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Economics","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Mary E. Lovely","Peter J. Wilcoxen"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2015,"date_issued":"2015-05-15T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2015-05-15T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T04:54:59Z","subjects":["China","Demand side management programs","Energy","Enterprise restructuring","Social and Behavioral Sciences"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://surface.syr.edu/etd/205","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Mary E. Lovely","Peter J. Wilcoxen"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Chow, Melissa Chirk-May"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Economics"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["China","Demand side management programs","Energy","Enterprise restructuring","Social and Behavioral Sciences"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://surface.syr.edu/etd/205"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This dissertation analyzes the differences between private and non-private firms in two contexts. Chapters 1 and 2 examine the electricity industry in the United States and the motivation behind electric utilities' usage of demand side management programs. The first chapter focuses on load management programs, which decrease electricity demand during the peak hours of the day. It looks into the impact of a plausibly exogenous decrease in natural gas prices on the utilization and capacity of these programs. The second chapter analyzes the relationship between electricity market deregulation and electric utilities' energy efficiency activity. The third chapter investigates the impact of Chinese enterprise restructuring on employment, wage bills, and productivity. All three chapters show that different objectives due to ownership type lead to differences in firm behavior.
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